Spain's PM visits Ceuta after thousands breached border
Thousands of people continued pouring into Ceuta from Morocco during the night, after Spanish police lost control of the border. The head of the city
Thousands of people continued pouring into Ceuta from Morocco during the night, after Spanish police lost control of the border. The head of the city government estimated that 60,000 people had entered. Editors note: For more on the migrant crisis in Ceuta, Spain, follow our blog here. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, his interior minister and military personnel were bound for the North African enclave of Ceuta on Friday, a day after thousands of people gained irregular entry to the Spanish territory. At least 18 people died as tens of thousands of people rushed into the small Spanish coastal city, many of them drowning but some also perishing in a stampede to cross the breakwater fence. Authorities are still puzzling over what prompted such large crowds to suddenly seek entry. Spanish authorities were overwhelmed by the latest influx Image: Atlas/REUTERS Regional government head estimates 60,000 new arrivals Preliminary estimates suggest that tens of thousands gained entry on Thursday alone as the Guardia Civil lost control of the border to Morocco. The head of the autonomous city governemnt, Juan Jesus Vivas, estimated that around 60,000 people had arrived, well over half Ceuta's population.
"Estimates indicated that around 60,000 people have entered our city as a result of this event," he said. "This figure shows that it is impossible to absorb such pressure. It is absolutely impossible." Around 24 hours earlier, prior to the mass breach, Vivas had issued an esimate of between 1,500 and 2,000. Ceuta's population is roughly 85,000 people. "People are still entering. The reinforcements that have arrived are only helping the injured and other humanitarian efforts," Rachid Sbihi, who leads a local workers association representing Civil Guard officers, told the Associated Press. Both EFE and AP said correspondents observed some people seeking to return to Morocco on Friday, with the city's small migrant reception center completely overwhelmed. Border police said they had to switch their focus to trying to keep people safe, with at least 18 people killed in the chaos Image: Atlas/REUTERS Spain's PM Sanchez blames traffickers for misrepresenting court ruling Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez arrived in the territory on Friday along with Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska. In a press conference, he called the mass crossings a "violation of Spain's territorial integrity." Sanchez attributed the sudden increase in people seeking to swim around the border to a rumor being spread by human traffickers, deliberately misinterpreting a recent Supreme Court ruling.
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